Frequent news stories about unethical corporations have made consumers more suspicious than ever. They don’t have the time or the money to waste on a company that doesn’t have their best interests at heart. To overcome that skepticism and boost a customer relationship building strategy, says George Ludwig, author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code, a company must have a reputation for being credible and trustworthy.

Of course, creating a winning reputation is easier said than done. Everyone must get in the act: customer service reps, middle managers, marketing specialists, and more. Ludwig suggests putting these reputation-builders into practice at your company:

• Create clear reputation standards. It’s important that everyone in the organization be constantly reminded of the kind of reputation they should be building for the company. Get new hires and current employees to sign a “World-Class Reputation Credo Contract” that emphasizes trustworthiness, which is built on service-centricity, character, and competence.

• Ask for customer feedback. Here’s a great way to get an honest assessment of your corporate identity and reputation: Ask anyone who will listen — customers, prospects, colleagues, friends, and family — about their experiences with your company. Make customer surveys and comment cards a staple of your customer service, so that you are constantly getting feedback from your biggest critics. And once you’ve collected all this feedback, act on it.

• Know who you are. Believe you can be better. Take stock of what kind of company you’ve got right now. What motivates you and the other leaders in your company? What motivates your employees? In which areas do you excel, and in which ones do you fall short? These are the types of questions you and your employees need to consider in order to assess your company’s reputational strengths and weaknesses.

• Become an industry headliner by specializing in a market niche. In your companywide self-assessment, you may find that the reason your business has a sub-par reputation is because it is spread too thin. Concentrating your business in a single industry niche allows everyone within the company to maximize their expertise and credibility. And it helps the company put out better products and provide better service.

Permalink: http://www.fuelnet.com/?p=530